


i pocky you.

by inpiniteu



Category: NU'EST
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Best Friends, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Hufflepuff Kang Dongho | Baekho, Hufflepuff Kim Jonghyun | JR, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-12
Updated: 2020-11-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:48:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27528703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inpiniteu/pseuds/inpiniteu
Summary: Muggle-born Dongho thinks Pepero day is the perfect opportunity to confess to his best friend.
Relationships: Kang Dongho | Baekho/Kim Jonghyun | JR
Comments: 12
Kudos: 39





	i pocky you.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [3minswriting](https://archiveofourown.org/users/3minswriting/gifts).



> Well, this got totally out of hand and definitely wasn't what I had in mind when I thought of writing for Pepero day but no regrets!
> 
> No joke about user Pockyjr, sadly. Maybe next time!
> 
> Unbetaed so please, forgive possible mistakes. 
> 
> To a lovely person, whose encouragement means a lot.

“Dongho, did you lose something? You've been going through your bag for the past five minutes,” Jonghyun asks in a whisper. “Don’t tell me you left your herbology homework in the greenhouses _again_.”

Dongho freezes mid-movement, eyes wide and red tinting his cheeks as he's reminded of that time he forgot his homework in one of the greenhouses, only for a hungry Screechsnap to feast on it. It only happened once, but of course Jonghyun, in all his best friend glory, has fun bringing it up years later and every chance he gets.

Dongho shakes his head and hugs his bag close to his chest. He should’ve known better and be more careful. Of course, Jonghyun would notice his inner turmoil. After all, nothing ever slips past his best friend’s sharp eyes.

Kim Jonghyun notices everything, even when he’s disconnecting himself from his surroundings by reading manhwas in the library. Madam Pince would probably kick the two of them out if she were to learn that Jonghyun smuggles books unrelated to magic, especially muggle ones, inside her sacred place but neither of them is worried or particularly scared. They will cross that bridge when they come to it, and in the meantime, what she doesn't know won't kill her.

“Ah, no. I’m fine,” he whispers back, looking away. That’s the truth. He hasn’t lost anything, except for his courage.

Coward is probably the last word someone would think of using to describe the best beater Hufflepuff has seen in decades, but then again, he isn’t himself whenever Jonghyun is concerned. His best friend turns him into a tongue-tied, giggling mess like no one else can.

While his long hours of practice on the quidditch field might have given him muscles and an imposing, strong body, anyone who is on a first-name basis with him knows he’s a soft person inside. His body might be hard but his heart is pure mush and he’s a prime example of why judging people on their appearance isn’t the wisest thing to do.

Kim Jonghyun is another example of that.

With the way he always seems to be swimming in his wizard robes and his big puppy eyes that make all the girls in their common room swoon, most of the students in Hogwarts tend to overlook Jonghyun’s physical strength and his ability to charm anyone he comes across. A big mistake, really.

Dongho knows better than them. Jonghyun is dangerous. Not death eater dangerous, of course, and Jonghyun would never hurt anyone willingly, but his existence causes a lot of harm.

Especially to Dongho’s heart.

Indeed, Kang Dongho, just like half of their year and perhaps even half of Hogwarts' student body, is head over heels with Jonghyun.

Dongho realized his feelings for Jonghyun almost two years ago, since that summer day his heart suddenly skipped a beat after Jonghyun smiled at him and he _knew_. Two years of dealing with his feelings in secret, of longing and wanting to be more than a friend but keeping his crush to himself.

Friendship is better than nothing, right? He used to believe that, but the ache in his chest disagrees. Disagrees so much Dongho doesn’t think he can go on like this any longer.

He needs to let his feelings out and today might just be the right day for him to do so.

It’s Pepero day, after all, and thus, a wonderful opportunity for him to confess. Dongho has always loved muggle traditions—they remind him of his childhood back in Jeju and how much Pepero day used to be fun when he was in elementary school. His muggle heritage is an inherent part of him, and while he has adjusted well to the wizard customs after spending five years in Hogwarts, he often finds himself missing home and its simplicity.

Especially on days like today. Thankfully, Jonghyun gets him and that’s enough.

Dongho will never stop being grateful that Kang and Kim are so close in the alphabet. Two Korean kids sorted one after the other on their first day in Hogwarts, both of them muggle-born and sent to Hufflepuff by the Sorting Hat. What were the odds, really? Even years later, Dongho is still amazed it happened.

It must be fate. As silly as it sounds, Dongho likes to believe it is. Not that he would say it out loud. It’s too cheesy, even for him. Only Jonghyun brings out that side of him.

Speaking of Jonghyun, his best friend just hums in response, going back to his manhwa, and Dongho heaves a sigh of relief. He’s safe for now.

Man, he’s ridiculous. _Get a grip, Kang Dongho_ , he mumbles under his breath, lightly slapping his right cheek to snap out of whatever negative mindset he’s got himself trapped in.

His best friend is the nicest person he has ever met. It’s not for nothing that Jonghyun is a Prefect and will, without a doubt, be chosen as Head Boy when the time comes.

Stories of confessions gone wrong are fairly common in the school, and while Dongho has his fair share of friends who got rejected and humiliated in public, there’s nothing to worry about right now. Not with Jonghyun. 

He would never do that, would never be cruel because he isn’t returning someone's feelings. With that thought in mind, Dongho cheers up and digs into his bag again in high spirits, his hand closing on what it has been looking for since they got there.

It’s now or never.

“Here,” he says, dropping a box of Pocky on the table, right in front of Jonghyun. “For you.”

His nerves get the best of him again as Jonghyun's eyes are fixed on the box. Running away sounds like a good option and his fingers are itching to grab his wand and accio his _Nimbus 2018_ so he can fly far away and never come back. He can't bring himself to do it and just waits in silence for a reaction from his friend.

He doesn’t have to wait long, which is a relief.

Jonghyun blinks, discarding his manhwa to the side to focus on Dongho and the box in front of him even more, and Dongho, for the first time since they've met in the great hall when they were eleven, is unable to figure out what Jonghyun is thinking.

His best friend’s face is a blank canvas. Dongho frowns.

“Pocky?” Jonghyun asks, and the surprise that couldn't be found on his face is obvious in his voice.

Dongho’s gaze is unrelenting, which is perhaps why he immediately notices how Jonghyun absently plays with the blue ribbon wrapped over the box in contained confusion. It took him a dozen mispronounced spells and even more tries to get the same shade of blue as Jonghyun’s favorite sweater but as he sees Jonghyun finally breaking into a smile, as if he was understanding what Dongho did, Dongho thinks it was worth the hassle.

Everything is worth it when it comes to Jonghyun.

“Did I miss something? It isn’t my birthday, is it?”

Dongho breaks into a loud laugh, only stopping as Jonghyun slaps his thigh harshly over and over again until he calms down. “It’s November, Jonghyun. Your birthday is in June.”

“Oh.” Jonghyun’s face turns red and he looks away embarrassingly. “Then why? How did you even get those in here?”

Dongho refuses to think of all the trouble he got into to get Jonghyun’s favorite brand _and_ flavor. Only a written promise of him going home for Christmas, instead of staying in Hogwarts like he usually did, convinced his mom to go get these for him.

“You don’t want to know,” he simply says, ignoring Jonghyun’s curious eyes on him. He refuses to give Jonghyun another reason to roast him and changes the subject swiftly. “Also, it’s Pepero day.”

Realization settles on Jonghyun’s face. “I forgot,” he says, as if Dongho hadn’t already guessed that.

Jonghyun rubs the back of his neck, which is what he always does when he’s nervous or embarrassed and Dongho doesn’t know what to do. He’s embarrassed, too, and this isn’t going well at all.

“I’m so sorry, Dongho. I have nothing for you. Did you give them to the others, too?”

"No!" Dongho’s voice is a little bit too loud as he rushes to answer. He doesn't want Jonghyun to imagine things or get the wrong idea. 

Jonghyun recoils in surprise and Dongho takes a deep breath before opening his mouth again, this time calmer. “No, I didn’t.”

Minhyun and Mingi are good friends, sure, but hell would freeze over before he buys them something. Those two rascals truly don’t deserve it, anyway. They’re too noisy and just insufferable most of the time.

Only Jonghyun deserves Pocky. Only Jonghyun is special to him.

“Jonghyun,” Dongho calls, waiting until his friend looks at him to continue. His heart is about to burst out of his ribcage, but he doesn’t want to back down now. “I like you.”

Jonghyun’s reaction isn’t what Dongho expected. There’s no rejection, no surprise even. Was he that obvious that Jonghyun already knew he was in love with him? He doesn't think so but then again—

Jonghyun is simply smiling at him and Dongho is left speechless. Usually, that damn smile is always giving Dongho butterflies but right now, he just wants Jonghyun to do something. Say something. Anything, really, to put him out of his misery.

This is a total disaster, but giving up now would be stupid. He's come this far already. 

He tries again, the words coming out of his mouth leaving no room for ambiguity just like what he wanted. “I like _like _y__ ou. Like I’m trying-to-confess-to-you like you.”

This time, his words hit home. Jonghyun drops the box of Pocky in shock, a few chocolate sticks spilling out of ripped foil packaging and rolling onto the table. Dongho is quick to react, gathering them together and putting them back in while Jonghyun gathers his thoughts.

“I—" Jonghyun starts, only to fall silent as Dongho turns to look at him. 

Dongho feels bad. The awkwardness between the two of them is the last thing he wanted to happen. He didn’t want to make his friend uncomfortable, and he’s about to apologize for surprising the other just as Jonghyun slips a Pocky stick between Dongho's parted lips.

There’s no full moon tonight from what he knows, so Dongho fails at finding a rational explanation on why Jonghyun is suddenly acting so weird. _What’s going on here? Is this some kind of joke?_ He wants to understand.

Asking for answers becomes the last thing on his mind, though, because his brain goes on overdrive as soon as Jonghyun puts the other side of the stick in his mouth and hitches closer and closer and _closer_ —

Closer, until their lips smack together in the chastest of kisses and Dongho gets a taste of milk chocolate and the grape juice Jonghyun drank earlier. It's odd but not entirely unpleasant. 

Jonghyun pulls away, now grinning wider than ever. _That damn smile_. Dongho loves it so much.

“I pocky you, Kang Dongho.”

Dongho chuckles, amused. Jonghyun looks proud of himself, too, and adds, “That means I really really like you too.”

At that, Dongho breaks into a full smile before diving in for another kiss and they're still busy kissing as Madam Pince throws them out of the library, scandalized by what she witnessed. Her rant over about their unacceptable behavior continues even as the doors of the library close behind them, and they both take a look at each other before bursting into laughter.

“I'm sorry for the house points we've just lost because of me, Mister Prefect,” Dongho teases, poking the prefect badge neatly pinned on Jonghyun's robe.

Jonghyun rolls his eyes and bumps their shoulders together. “Because of us, you mean. I'll remind you I kissed you first.”

“That's true.” Dongho nods but he won't admit defeat easily. “I guess I should get even, then,” he says, and he does just that.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments/kudos are always appreciated.
> 
> [twitter](HTTP://twitter.com/astropicals) \- [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/hwangpeach)


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